Rick (00:00):
What is the gambling rules and protections that might keep you safe here no longer apply? Peter Carter is Director of Travel Accident Compensation at Carter Capner Law. Good day Peter.

Peter Carter (00:10):
Good morning, Rick.

Rick (00:11):
Why is this a problem for some people?

Peter Carter (00:15):
Well, the rules that apply in Australian casinos appear to be shunned by the cruise ship operators simply because they’re in international waters and we have accounts of people being allowed to gamble when they’re intoxicated, being provided automatic credit and without any adequate systems to detect problem gamblers.

Rick (00:41):
What can be the impacts of this?

Peter Carter (00:44):
Well, gambling affects people, as we saw. The passenger that jumped overboard a few weeks ago outside Sydney Harbour because he was distraught about running up something like a $5,000 gambling debt. And there doesn’t justice, that’s a tragedy, but it’s also a tragedy for his family. So what we are after is looking for safe procedures on board cruise ships.

Rick (01:11):
What might that look like if they’re operating in international waters?

Peter Carter (01:16):
Well, that’s a good question. They’re outside Australian territorial waters, and they seem to think that anything goes. In my opinion, that’s not the case. Consumer laws of Australia might not apply, but the ship is a Pacific Adventures, a UK ship, and it’s under sails under that flag. That’s its flag state. So UK law applies and UK does have strong consumer protection laws. So we think that the passengers in this situation deserve some recourse, and that’s what we’re investigating.

Rick (02:01):
Quarter to eight. ABC Radio Hobart. You’re listening to Peter Carter, director of Travel Accident Compensation at Carter Capner Law, who is looking at the possibility of… Is it what, passengers suing cruise liners for not having gambling protections?

Peter Carter (02:18):
Yes. It’s passengers suing cruise liners for being provided automatic credit. That needs to be investigated. There’s no assessment made as a suitability to be provided that credit. And then being served while they’re intoxicated. The other issue is that many of them have been prevented from disembarking. They’ve been given a third degree when the ship arrives back in Hobart or Sydney and not allowed to disembark. That’s clearly unlawful. That’s regarded as unlawful imprisonment. So there’s a lot to answer for we believe, and this is our backyard. We do a lot of work in this area and that’s why we’re concerned about it.

Rick (03:01):
If people have had experiences of gambling, of overspending on these trips, of maybe being served or allowed to gamble while they’re drunk or intoxicated, do you want to hear from them, Peter?

Peter Carter (03:14):
We certainly do. We certainly do. They can go to our website or search cruise ship gambling, and we do want to hear them because we’ve got to build a matrix about exactly what happened and get a range of experiences. But what we are hearing so far from the people who’ve contacted us is very concerning.

Rick (03:36):
Are people losing their life savings or are they just losing thousands of dollars?

Peter Carter (03:40):
They’re not losing their life savings, but I don’t know what their life savings are. They’re certainly losing thousands of dollars. And if someone’s distraught enough to jump overboard over a $5,000 debt, it tells me that these are large amounts to the passengers.

Rick (03:56):
Yeah. Yeah. Really interesting. Peter, thanks for talking with us today.

Peter Carter (04:00):
Good morning, Rick. Thank you.

Rick (04:01):
And if you want to look that up, gambling on cruises or Carter Capner Law might be some recourse for some people there as well. Lots of people writing jokes this.